Livescribe pen and AudioNote are also good resources. Efofex is good for some but is usually seen as an alegbra and high app. ModMath is for a lower level math, although using graph paper works for some in earlier math - I made my own so that the boxes were bigger and you every other column was lightly shaded. In college/high school my boys used peer note takers and notes from professors. Dragon Naturally speaking and a good typing program. Although sixth grade is early, it's important to teach when you handwrite vs type vs dictate/scribe. I've found that what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another, and it was very much a trial and error process.

My boys were relieved to have the evaluation and have a name for their struggles and strengths.* We found out both of the boys were twice exception which was great for their self-esteem and determination. In addition, we talked a lot about having a disability doesn't mean you're disabled. Many dysgraphic students show great process in a quiet, one-on-one setting however but in a classroom creates a completely different scenarios as stated just above. My sons are college students that are on the dean's list this is possible because they learned how to learn with their disabilities, work with their accommodations, and self-advocacy. (* as are most/if not all of the children I work with.) I'm now a tutor and am so sorry for your experiences with professionals. Occasionally, I tell parents their children need someone other than me, or they need additional testing/therapy. (I always welcome parents to observe sessions after we've developed a rhythm and give them many strategies when working with their children. This summer of the 16 students I work with about 30% follow through with my requests for them to practice at home - specially it's handwriting assignment that should take 5-10 minutes). Often these children need OT as well as tutoring. It's unfortunate that it takes them over a year to follow through because the gains we see after therapy and/or assessment are significantly accelerated. On a couple of occasions a speech/language evaluation was imperative as the reason the student couldn't "write/spell" was that they couldn't hear/reproduce the sounds in the words. Until that was worked on they could write as neatly as possible but putting their thoughts on paper was difficult/if not impossible. Yes, these children could read, but show signs of stealth dyslexia (Dr. Eide's - The Mislabeled Child). Practicing of handwriting should be done in isolation until it's automatic, I've found working with a metronome and insisting on sub-vocalization a key to this. Some of the latest research shows that pencil grip isn't that important - http://neuronetlearning.com/blog/pencil-grip-is-less-important-than-letter-formation-and-speed/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pencil-grip-is-less-important-than-letter-formation-and-speed

ZenJenn, Orton Gillingham should really help her then. I think that it will be well worth your time and energy and the cost is significantly lower that you would expect to pay with an OG tutor. I'm just going to add a 'little' more about dysgraphia for other that might be following. Mostly I've been talking about motor dysgraphia but not all dysgraphics have illegible handwriting although it's often a red flag. Below is from how Susan Hutchinson describes them. (She defines 5 most other only define 3 - Duell's definition is after Susan's) The 5 Types of Dysgraphia Dyslexic Dysgraphia With Dyslexic Dysgraphia a person’s spontaneously written work is usually illegible, copied work is pretty good, and spelling is bad. Finger tapping speed (a method for identifying fine motor problems) is normal. A Dyslexic Dysgraphic does not necessarily have Dyslexia. Dyslexia and Dysgraphia appear to be unrelated but often can occur together. Motor Dysgraphia Motor Dysgraphia is due to deficient fine motor skills, poor dexterity, poor muscle tone, and/or unspecified motor clumsiness. Generally, written work is poor to illegible, even if copied by sight from another document. Letter formation may be acceptable in very short samples of writing, but this requires extreme effort, an unreasonable amount of time to accomplish and cannot be sustained for a significant length of time. Writing is often slanted due to holding a pen or pencil incorrectly. Spelling skills are not impaired. Finger tapping speed results are below normal. Spatial Dysgraphia Spatial Dysgraphia is due to a defect in the understanding of space. This person has illegible spontaneously written work, illegible copied work, but normal spelling and normal finger tapping speed. Students with Spatial Dysgraphia often have trouble keeping their writing on the lines and difficulty with spacing between words. Phonological Dysgraphia Phonological Dysgraphia is characterized by writing and spelling disturbances in which the spelling of unfamiliar words, non-words, and phonetically irregular words is impaired. Individuals with Phonological Dysgraphia are also unable to hold phonemes in memory and blend them in their appropriate sequence to produce the target word. Lexical Dysgraphia Lexical Dysgraphia is evidenced when a person can spell but relies on standard sound-to-letter patterns with misspelling of irregular words. This is more common in languages such as English and French which are less phonetic than a language such as Spanish. This type of Dysgraphia is very rare in children. Some children may have more than one type of Dysgraphia. Symptoms, in actuality, may vary in presentation from what is listed here. From Margaret Kay's website Deuel (1994) has divided dysgraphia into three subtypes: Dyslexic dysgraphia Dysgraphia due to motor clumsiness Dysgraphia due to a defect in the understanding of space In dyslexic dysgraphia, spontaneously written text is poorly legible and spelling is severely abnormal. Copying of written text is relatively preserved, however, and finger-tapping speed on a neuropsychological battery is generally normal. Dysgraphia due to motor clumsiness is associated with poorly legible spontaneously written text, preserved spelling, and poorly legible copying of written text. Finger tapping speed in such cases is generally abnormal. Dysgraphia due to a defect in understanding of space is associated with poorly legible spontaneously written text, preserved spelling, poorly legible copying of written text, and normal finger tapping speed.

The other item to consider for some dysgraphic children is an Occupational Therapy evaluation. It's not that it made a huge difference in my son's penmanship in the "classroom" but it helped in some other ways. Susan Hutchinson, author of Handwriting Solutions - http://www.handwriting-solutions.com/, writes Sue Hutchinson – International OT Consultant It is often thought that continued handwriting practice will improve a Dysgraphic student’s ability to use paper and pencil alone as a useful tool to complete all their written schoolwork. This is rarely the case. While Occupational Therapy can sometimes help to improve a Dysgraphic student’s letter and number formation in isolation and/or in short writing samples, this improvement is, 99.9% of the time, not able to be sustained when kids are actually using their handwriting to complete their written schoolwork. The same thing is true of making kids re-do written assignments to make them more legible. In cases of Dysgraphia, “practice does not make perfect. IN preteen, teens and adults. Dysgraphic students have difficulties with syntax structure and grammar (Dysgraphia and Dyslexia – dyslexiavictoriaonline.com) Random (or non-existent) punctuation. Spelling errors (sometimes same word spelled differently); reversals; phonic approximations; syllable omissions; errors in common suffixes. Clumsiness and disordering of syntax; an impression of illiteracy. Misinterpretation of questions and questionnaire items. Disordered numbering and written number reversals.

I don't think that our children can completely avoid writing so I think it's important that we (usually the Mom) decide what the goal is. What I do know is that the act of writing needs to be separated from the creative part of the process. We've also purchased editing software for my son. One of his evaluators described his editing process like this. When we edit a sentence we read the sentence and use all the rules we know and edit the sentence -- capitalization, commas, spelling, punctuation.... When my son reads a sentence it goes like this. He read the sentences and applies Rule 1. Capitalize the first word in the sentence. Then he reads the sentences again and Rule 1a. Capitalize all I that are single. Rule 1a. Capitalize all proper names (His first read if for Names only) Then he reads the sentence again and does Rule 1b. Capitalize all titles Then he reads the sentence again and does Rule 1c. Capitalize all dialogue THen he goes to commas. Oh, what else I forgot to say is dysgraphic children often use a mix of upper and lower case letter, so this is the most difficult of tasks. The reality is by this time he see nothing because it says what he wants it to say. My son talks about when he puts a pen in his hand it's like unplugging the rabbit ears on the TV set at his grandparents cabin. It just get fuzzy. Another student I work with says every time he writes a letter he has to visualize what it looks like and then often someone changes the font.

Yes my son is 2E. He has a verbal IQ in the 99th percentile. His reading comprehension is very high (can't find it) but his decoding skill/word attack is at the 26th percentile putting his overall score in the 70th percentile and his overall writing in at the 39th percentile - a 40 point differential in his IQ and academic performance is extremely frustrating for him. That said OG is a multisensory approach that in it's purist form requires the student to write all of the dictated word with paper and pencil. Susan Barton (Barton program) realizes that sometimes the act of writing can get in the way of student learning to read. Many OG tutors feel that the importance of writing can't be overlooked. Part of OG is writing sentences as well. I tutor 4 student (2 with official dx and 2 undergoing testing) that are dysgraphic and dyslexics - to varying degrees. Yes I have them write but not always. Sometimes they spell orally, other times in the sand/salt, sometimes with tiles, on the white board - that easier,. I really mix it up and I'm very observant of their writing fatigue. I've also recently purchased old-fashioned cartridge pens for calligraphy - they like those. It also help with pressure on the page, positioning of the hand, starting at the bottom - it doesn't work well then. I've also purchased an old manual typewriter but have to get it fixed. Some of the research says that learning to type on an manual typewriter helps them because of the resistance of the keys it creates a stronger muscle memory. OG will help with the phonemic awareness.

Yes my son is 2E. He has a verbal IQ in the 99th percentile. His reading comprehension is very high (can't find it) but his decoding skill/word attack is at the 26th percentile putting his overall score in the 70th percentile and his overall writing in at the 39th percentile - a 40 point differential in his IQ and academic performance is extremely frustrating for him. That said OG is a multisensory approach that in it's purist form requires the student to write all of the dictated word with paper and pencil. Susan Barton (Barton program) realizes that sometimes the act of writing can get in the way of student learning to read. Many OG tutors feel that the importance of writing can't be overlooked. Part of OG is writing sentences as well. So depending on the tutor they may or may not be sensitive to the struggles of a dysgraphic student. I think part of that will be what their previous experiences have been. I'm really sensitive to a dysgraphic child because of my son. Usually new tutors are less like to stray from what they've been taught. I tutor 4 student (2 with official dx and 2 undergoing testing) that I think are dysgraphic and dyslexics - to varying degrees. Yes I have them write but not always. Sometimes they spell orally, other times in the sand/salt, sometimes with tiles, on the white board - that easier,. I really mix it up and I'm very observant of their writing fatigue. I've also recently purchased old-fashioned cartridge pens for calligraphy - they like those. It also help with pressure on the page, positioning of the hand, starting at the bottom - it doesn't work well then. I've also purchased an old manual typewriter but have to get it fixed. Some of the research says that learning to type on an manual typewriter helps them because of the resistance of the keys it creates a stronger muscle memory. OG will help with the phonemic awareness.

Long story.... When my son was in 7th grade his math teacher, unbeknownst to me, told my son that although he was one of her top students she wasn't recommending him for honor algebra because he never showed all his work and what he did was illegible. I've coach my son's Knowledge Bowl team and what I found interesting was one of the team members was a math nerd (I say that lovingly - I'll call him Joe). When a math question came up Joe would start to work on the problems but my son would come up with the answer first and he did it all in his head. Joe would never have got it done before the time limit was up. About a year ago we found Efofex.com. It's a math and science program for kids after algebra. Check it out. It's been amazing. He used it for both his precalc and college chem classes. They had never seen the program but he went to both professor and demonstrated it and neither of them had a problem with him using it. (This was also coordinated through disability services.)

I just typed a reply that took so long I lost it. So I'll try and do it in chunks. My son writes about 8 words per minute from memorized text. When he is creating the content it's about half of that. After we figured what was going on I thought we could teach him to type. So we started a typing program and he did 15-20 minutes 4/5 day a week. When he began he was typing 20 wpm and after six months he was at 21 wpm. So then we started scribing (high school) and he was so fast that noone could keep up with him. So then we went and got Dragon Naturally Speaking. I don't know what his speed is I just know the results are more in line with his knowledge of the content and he's not frustrated. He now uses all three forms of writing. He's had a professor, where he was an active participant in class, be very generous in grading some of his short response. (He doesn't capitalize, spell is horrible and he has do use of punctuation). This is all about the working memory but that's another email. For most short answer response or short reflections he types. (He's created his own typing form and his speed has increased). Then for longer papers (over 3) he dictates. He also has a notetaker. This was very important in pre-calc and college Chem.

I'm a trained OG tutor and I'm passionate about children that have trouble writing (dysgraphia). OG is the gold standard for teaching struggling reads and the bases for program like Barton. If your children isn't dyslexic it may not be the appropriate solution. It's a great program for the right kids but it's not for all kids. Dysgraphia is not just difficulty with handwriting. Dysgraphia can stand alone or it can co-exist with other difficulties often dyslexia or ADD. My son is very dysgraphic with a little of all of the types, with a little bit of dyslexia (his reading speed and comprehension is significantly above grade level - but decoding and oral fluency accuracy is below grade level). I'd posted about the numerous types but it's too lengthy for here. Dysgraphia is also know as disorder of written expression. OG is not a curriculum but a multisensory philosophy to teach reading that involves an explicit systematic approach where the student practices skill to automaticity. For my son with dysgraphia writing is not the gate way to learning. Putting a pencil in his hand is actually an interference to learning. He is 17 and next year will graduate high school with 64 college credits, however, if you look at something he penned vs typed vs dictated you will believe they are from three completely different people with a very different understanding of the material presented. And he read over 3 hours a day. Look at National Center for Learning Disabilities (.org). They have videos entitled Ask the Expert, one is on dysgraphia. Also ldonline.org has some fantastic information. Hope this helps in your journey.

My son has dysgraphia but it wasn't diagnosis until he 13. I would strongly suggest the you have an Occupational Therapy evaluation. My son did OT and it helped with some things but not really the handwritting. (He also struggled with a number of small motor skills.) The OT said that handwritting really needs to be worked on before 5th to be effective. Other OTs say it's by 3rd grade. I would also suggest a complete education evaluation. The reason I say this is as children get old and attend public school/colleges the schools will want this type of documentation. Also to get accomodations on the college entrance exam this documentaion is important and to get accomodation in college itself. As a high school junior this year my son is taking attending college and taking a full load of college classes [His verbal IQ is at the 98th percentile, his math and reading scores put him in the 95+ percentile depending on the test (and accomodations) and his writing is at about the 20th percent without accomodation.] The student service makes sure he get notes from each of his classes, that he has access to a computer with Dragon Naturally speaking for exams and some other smaller accommodations. (Even though my son practice typing for a year his speed never improved). For short answer/essay questions on assessments ~ when using a pencil my son's looks like a struggling 3rd graders, when he types it's early middle school, when he dicates w/ Dragon his work earns B+ and A's in college. He actually just earned an A in Composition I in College. ( I never would have believed that was possible when he was 13.) There is also math and science software. Because he was identified just before he was starting algebra I don't know the name of the software for younger math students. My son reads and has always read well beyound his peers/age. He could also spell orally but make mistake in writing when he'd just spelled it. His capitalization and puncutation is never good and he uses a grammer editing software. He wouldn't wear buttons until after OT. He still has difficulty tying a good knot and using a knive to cut fat off a piece of meat. Hope something in my post helps you. PS. This is my first post is there a spelling function on the toolbar that I just can't see.